Specifically, the Justice Department said in a complaint CitiFinancial – whose subsidiary CitiFinancial Auto Corp. has since gotten out of the auto loan business – was responsible for repossessing 164 cars from 2007 to 2010 belonging to military servicemembers protected by the Act, without getting required court orders first. The settlement calls for affected servicemembers to receive $5,000 each, and in some cases more.

The SCRA, formerly known as the Soldiers and Sailors Civil Relief Act, predates World War II. It’s a throwback to an era of a massive draft, when civilians and reservists found themselves pressed into active duty by the millions.

The Act applies only to financial obligations the servicemember on active duty incurred before they went on active duty.

Shutterstock

There are two main protections. The law imposes a 6 percent interest rate cap on loans. That includes mortgages and auto loans. In addition, lenders have to get a court order before they can foreclose on a mortgage, or repossess a vehicle from someone who’s covered by the SCRA.

Before repossessing a vehicle from someone who may be protected by the SCRA, lenders are supposed to check a web site belonging to the Department of Defense.

The Justice Department said in a press release that since 2011, it has secured more than $450 million in monetary relief for servicemembers under the SCRA. That’s for all purposes including mortgages, installment loans, credit cards and other categories, not just auto loans.

For example last year, the Justice Department said Wells Fargo & Co. agreed to pay $4.1 million to resolve allegations that it improperly repossessed more than 400 cars owned by military members without first obtaining a court order, as required by the SCRA.